Homestuck fanfiction: Visiting
by Russel Smith
Summary: What started out as an average day at work quickly changed into an adventure as Damien ended up defending someone from another world. What happened from there can only be described as life changing. My first fan fiction to be put on the internet, but it's one that I've been thinking about for a while.
1. Chapter 1

Prologue

Hello, people of the Reality Sphere. If you haven't heard any stories from before, my name is Ruteuf. I'm the Watcher of the Future. I, along with my two friends Sentara and Pascheon, keep the balance of all reality within the Reality Sphere. All things in creation exit in it, so odds are that you've heard of something that has happened in another reality. But I've gone a bit away from why I'm here. It's become our duty to make sure that all the adventures that happen in the Reality Sphere get told and now it's my turn. This story will have three parts because that's how it happened. Anyway, most realities have a version of a webcomic called Homestuck. Little do they know that the reality where that story happened has more to tell. It all started when the Earth in that reality got a visitor quite unexpectedly.

Part One

**Earth**

Chapter 1

It was Monday morning in a small neighborhood in Jasperton, and it started out as an ordinary Monday morning for Damien Gregson. He woke up, stretched, ran a head through the dark brown mop that was his hair, and started to go about his business. Unfortunately, that business was interrupted by his sister, Jacklyn, almost busting down the door trying to get his attention. "Hey, get it in gear! We've got work to do."

He sighed. "You know, you could give me some time to actually take a shower so I don't scare people away at work."

"Fine, but hurry up. The boss wants us to open today." Damien held in a groan as he shut the bathroom door and started the water. Jacklyn and he had been working at a cafe for the past two years ever since their parents had died, leaving just enough to cover the funeral costs. It wasn't great, but it was a job. Damien covered the cooking, singing along to the radio that the boss let them have in the back much to the entertainment of all the customers, while Jacklyn let her charisma put the customers in a comfortable place. It wasn't much, but it was a job.

"Right, right." Thirty minutes later, they were on their way to the Sit n' Sip. It was a small place where the people could gather and read while they had their morning coffee. As soon as they got inside, Damien fired up the stove and took a big whiff. "Ah, I love the smell of cinnamon in the morning. Hey, Jacklyn, what's the special today?"

Jacklyn took a quick look at the menu the boss had made the night before. "Your favorite; Triple Berry Crepe."

Damien grinned as he went to do the morning prep. Soon, the café was open and customers began filing in. Around lunchtime, the boss showed up. He was a big guy, his muscular figure coming mostly from a military background. He was repeatedly asked how a guy could go from military service to running a café, and he repeatedly said, "It's calming."

Mr. Monroe walked into the building and looked around before nodding and heading behind the counter. "Looking good in here, you two, looking good. How did the morning go?"

"It went pretty well, Mr. Monroe," Jacklyn said. "I think everyone in the neighborhood comes when it's the Triple Berry Crepe special."

"Well, it is Damien's personal specialty," Monroe laughed. "I swear, that kitchen is the only place he smiles since the breakup."

"Shh!" Jacklyn said, with alarm. "Don't let him hear you mention that. I think he's trying to ignore it as much as possible at this point. Not that it helps when everyone in the neighborhood knows." She looked at Damien, humming to himself in front of the stove as he made some mini pancakes. That's when they all heard a ruckus from outside. As they all looked out the window, they saw a flash of dark green and blue run by followed by what looked like an angry mob.

"Boss, I'm going on lunch!" Damien yelled as he pulled off his apron and ran out the back door.

"Damien, don't go getting involved!" Jacklyn yelled after him.

"I don't see why you bothered. That's the way he is. Come on, we better go bail him out in case he gets in over his head.

Meanwhile, Damien had climbed onto the rooftops and was running to get ahead of the mob. He looked down just in time to see the person they were chasing run into an alley that ended in a dead end. He grimaced and started jumping down the fire escape all the way to the bottom just as the first people rounded the corner. "Stay calm. Everything's gonna be all right," he said to the person as he stood and faced the oncoming mob.

The crowd stopped just short when they saw him straighten up. There he was, a skinny guy just a hair shorter than six foot facing a crowd of angry men. The smell of alcohol was strong in the air as they stared at him. "Dude, it's the cook from that café," one of the men said.

"Why don't you go back to your kitchen, boy," one of the guys in front said. "Go act like a woman for a while."

Damien cocked an eyebrow. "Is that supposed to be an insult? You have to be drunk to think I'll give in to that." He started to take a step forward only to feel the person behind him pull his shirt. He looked behind him to see a girl sitting there and was surprised at her appearance. What was most obvious was the dark grey color of her skin and the fangs that poked out from behind her upper lip. She sat there almost completely covered by the forest green coat she wore, the blue hat on her head making it look like a cat with candy corn colored ears was on her. Damien didn't see any of this, though. What caught his attention were the olive green eyes that looked up at him with fear that was obviously not for herself. He sighed. "I'll be fine, just stay calm." With that, he turned back around and faced the men. "Now where were we?"

"Listen, kid, I'm gonna give you a chance to just walk away. I mean, your break-up was just a week ago, wasn't it?"

Damien stiffened. "What did you say?" he growled.

"Honestly, I'm not willing to add insult to injury, so just walk away and forget you ever saw that thing," the man slurred.

"Not. Happening," Damien said as he popped his neck.

"Fine," the man said before leading a charge. Damien started running forward and met the charge and the fists started flying. To his credit, Damien didn't let anyone pass him. Any who tried found themselves grabbed by the back of the shirt collar and thrown back into the fray. Soon, some were fighting just for the sake of fighting as the crowd slowly started turning on itself. Eventually, a couple had grabbed Damien by the arms and were holding him as a third threw punches and Damien yelled out in rebellion to the pain.

"All right, that's enough of that!" The fighting stopped as everyone turned to look at Monroe. The two men holding Damien dropped him suddenly and he picked himself up and left the crowd. The girl came up and hovered behind him, looking him over carefully. "Damien, you all right?"

"Never better," Damien muttered as he wiped blood from his nose.

"Then take that girl and get back in the café."

Damien looked like he was about to argue, then looked back at the girl and sighed. "Come on," he said.

"Get back to your business, Monroe. This don't concern you," one of the men said.

"When you're beating on my chef, yeah, it concerns me. Now get back to whatever bar you boys came from and leave them both alone. Get moving, Damien." The big man folded his arms and gave them all a look that said he was willing to get more involved if need be. The men parted as Damien walked through. As soon as he walked around the corner, a hand shot out and smacked the back of his head.

"What the hell were you thinking!?" Jacklyn yelled. Damien didn't say a word and kept walking, the girl trailing close behind. Jacklyn watched him leave, the concern evident on her face.

The rest of the men looked about uncertainly before slowly dispersing. Monroe sighed. "I'm amazed he let himself get hit in that."

"He shouldn't have gotten involved that much," Jacklyn said. "It's only a matter of time before he gets himself killed."

"It's just who he is," Monroe said. "Anyway, who's covering the register?"

"Shit!" Jacklyn ran back to the shop. Monroe chuckled a bit as he shook his head and slowly walked back.

* * *

Well, hear it is, my first fan fiction to actually be posted on the internet. This story has been rattling around in my head for a while now, so it feels good to finally be typing it out. I feel I should apologize as it's going to be a long story with some updates longer than others. The concept of the Reality Sphere is one that I use to connect my stories and will eventually be a finished story in and of itself. I don't know if an explanation better than the one Ruteuf gives here is necessary or wanted, but if so, I'll find some way to oblige. I'm really looking forward to the feedback on this!


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

When Jacklyn walked in, Damien was by the counter, furiously stirring some batter with the girl watching him like a hawk from the other side of the counter. "Did you stop bleeding?" Jacklyn asked. Damien didn't even look up from the bowl, merely nodding. Jacklyn sighed. "You're gonna have to say something at some point. I mean, you don't usually get angry after a fight."

"One of them brought up some sensitive business," Damien muttered. He stopped stirring to pour the batter into a dish and pulled out a couple of pancakes. After putting them on a plate, he turned to the girl. "Here, you hungry?" he asked as he put the plate in front of her. The girl looked at it warily, then glanced at him as she sniffed it. After a minute, she reached out and tore off a piece and ate it. Instantly, her eyes went wide and she practically pounced on the plate.

"What did you put in them?" Jacklyn asked.

"Cinnamon. I didn't think it'd get that kind of a reaction out of her, though. It's almost like she's never had it before."

"Has she said anything yet?"

"Nope. Been quiet as a mouse except for the occasional squeak when I turn suddenly. Kinda odd." He laid out some bread dough and started angrily kneading it by hand. The girl sat back a little, a pancake in her hands, to watch him punch it over and over again.

Jacklyn giggled. "It's kind of adorable how she won't let you out of her sight."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, she was clinging to you when you left the alley and she's been watching you like a hawk at least since I got here."

"I don't mind."

"That's weird. You hate it when people stare at you. Especially after something like what happened out there." That was when Monroe walked in.

"How's the nose, Damien?"

"Fine. Didn't get me too bad."

Monroe sighed. "Listen, take the rest of the day off." Damien started to protest, but Monroe held up a hand. "You know how you get sometimes, boy. Last time I had to replace the stove. Take the rest of the day, go wherever it is you go to relax, and chill out. I called Jamie in to cover the rest of your shift."

Damien sputtered some nonsense, then sighed. "Yes sir." He took off his apron and walked out from behind the counter, grabbing his backpack. The girl watched him curiously for a minute, then grabbed the last pancake, hopped off the stool she was sitting on, and ran after him.

Monroe chuckled a little. "She's a strange one, that one," he said.

"Yeah," was Jacklyn's only reply.

Damien kept walking for a bit, the girl trailing behind a little before he sighed. "You don't need to hide from me, you know," he said. The girl quietly quickened her pace until she caught up to him. He held back a chuckle as he watched her glance around her randomly, almost as though she was trying to take in everything around her at once. He had to stop her from walking out into traffic at a crosswalk as distracted as she was. It was interesting, though, that as much as she kept looking around her, her gaze kept going back to Damien as though she was worried he would disappear.

Eventually, they made it to a bus stop. He sat down, pulled out his mp3 player, and started listening to it. The girl looked at his headphones as though she was trying to decide what they were. He noticed and chuckled softly. "You want to try?" he asked as he pulled them off his ears. She looked at them doubtfully for a moment before putting them on and listening for a little bit. It wasn't long before she started smiling and bobbing her head a little. "I guess you like Funkist, then," he said before she got up and started dancing. He couldn't help but chuckle as the bus pulled up. A short trip later, they were walking into the local gym.

"Hey there, Damien," the clerk said. "I heard somethin' about you earlier. You face down any mobs recently?"

"Dude, don't even start with me on that crap," Damien said as he shook his head. "It's me and a guest today."

The clerk looked around at the girl and cocked an eyebrow. "This the chick that they were chasing?"

"Yeah, and if anyone lays a hand on her, they'll be dealing with me," Damien replied, raising his voice. All the men inside the gym who had started looking towards the front desk suddenly got very interested in their equipment. Damien sighed. "Come on."

It was interesting seeing the girl in that gym. She would wander a little ways away, look at a piece of equipment closely until the weight would come crashing down, then scurry back to where Damien was working out. The other people there would give her a strange look now and again, but for the most part, they left her alone. They knew better than to tempt Damien when he was upset.

With a final grunt, Damien let the weight on the last machine settle to a rest and stood up. With a slight stretch, he grabbed a nearby towel, wiped his face off and walked to the showers, the girl trailing along behind him. As soon as he got there, he sighed. "You're going to have to stay out here," he said. The girl got a panicked look and Damien started looking around. That's when an elderly woman walked up.

"Hello there, Damien, dear," she said.

"Hi, Mrs. Johnson, how are you?" he replied.

"Fine, dearie. Who is this lovely young woman with you?"

"She's new in town, doesn't know anyone. You mind watching her while I hit the showers?"

"It would be my pleasure."

Damien turned to the girl. She still looked a little panicked, so he put his hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "It's going to be okay. Mrs. Johnson here is going to make sure nothing happens to you. You can trust her." The girl glanced at Mrs. Johnson, and then gave a small nod. Damien smiled and walked into the showers. As the water rolled off his body, he found himself thinking on the day so far. _She's got to come from somewhere, right?_ he thought to himself. _Maybe from further into the city. It's too bad she won't talk, though._

It wasn't long before he came out of the showers. Mrs. Johnson and the girl had moved to seats near the door to the pool area"And that's how I found Mr. Higgenbotham, dear. He's been a good friend to me in these times."

"Talking about your cat again, Mrs. Johnson?"

"Why yes! He's such a good kitty. Why just yesterday I bought some ribbon to tie around his neck and he was still wearing it when I left."

"Sounds like you've got a good one there, all right. Has she talked any?"

"No," Mrs. Johnson said, shaking her head. "Not a peep out of the girl, but she makes a good listener. Well, I had better go. Mr. Higgenbotham will be missing me." She got up and left and Damien took her seat.

"So, I've got nothing left to do today," he said. "I figure I'll take you around some of the city, see if there's anything you recognize. How does that sound?"

The girl nodded her head slightly and smiled. _At least she's more relaxed now, _Damien thought. He chuckled before standing up and leading her out the door. That day, he took her all over the major points of the city_, _and each time he looked to see if she recognized anything, he caught her staring at him. It was about five in the afternoon when they stopped for a snack; two single scoops of chocolate ice cream. The girl went to do her usual sniff of the food, only to end up sticking her nose in it. Her head shot back up in shock, a spot of brown on her grey face. Damien couldn't help but chuckle as he grabbed a napkin.

"Here, let me take care of that," he said as he wiped her face off. She smiled shyly and became very interested in her treat. "Well, we've been at this all afternoon and still nothing. Let's go sit in that park over there." A little while later, snacks eaten, Damien was sitting on a bench, watching as the girl stared at the ground in front of them. All was still until water shot out of one of the many holes in the ground and the girl pounced on it, only to see the water shoot out of another and pounce on it. This continued for a good while until Damien couldn't take it anymore and started laughing out loud.

"Well if I didn't hear it myself, I wouldn't have believed it," came a voice from behind them. "This can't be _the _Damien Gregson I've seen around for the past week. He's more moody than this."

"Hey, Nick," Damien said without looking around. Nicholas James, Damien's best friend of six years, hopped over the back of the bench and settled down beside his friend.

"Seriously, bro, what's up? I don't think I've seen you this cheerful since the Great Bitch. Also, who's the chick?"

"I can't tell you. She hasn't said a word since I met her this morning. Quiet as a mouse."

"Give me five minutes with her and I'll get her talking," Nick chuckled, only to be slapped on the back of his head. "I was joking, bro!"

"Not funny this time. I don't think she'd understand."

"What makes you say that?"

"She's pretty innocent. You should have seen her at the gym earlier. She was more curious than anything."

"She could be from a third world country or something like that."

"Yeah, I thought that, too. She just understands English too well for me to say that's the situation, though."

"Well, she certainly seems lively," Nick chuckled as he watched the girl leap from water spout to water spout. "So, you didn't answer my first question. You get over the Great Bitch?"

"Why do you keep calling her that? I mean, I'm glad you're sticking with me on this, but the name calling's a bit juvenile, isn't it?"

"I figured you'd feel that way, bro. That's why I got the rest of the neighborhood calling her that before I started saying it in front of you. Now answer the question."

Damien sighed. "To be honest, up until recently, I've been trying to ignore the whole thing. It just hurt too much." He felt a hand on his leg and looked down to see a black fingerless glove around grey fingers. He looked up into her eyes to see concern there and smiled. "I've got to tell you, though; I don't know why, but I think I'll be fine."

"I told you everything would work out! You need to listen to me more." Nick looked at the girl and waved. "How's it going? I'm Nick, Damien's bro." The girl looked at him for a second, then mimicked his wave and looked back at Damien. "Bro, you might want to get her back to your place and get her dried off. She might catch a cold." With that, he got up, grinned and jogged off. Damien sighed and stood himself.

"He's right. We should be getting back." A short bus ride later, he was unlocking the door to the apartment and heading to the bathroom for a towel.

"You know," he said as he walked back into the front room where she was standing, "I feel I've been a bit rude. We went all over the city today and not once did I ask you your name."

"I don't think you're rude, Damien," she said with a smile. "And it's Nepeta. Nepeta Leijon."


	3. Chapter 3

_"This deserves way more follows/favorites. I love this. Keep up the good work!"_

_casrules 401_

Thanks! Hope you continue to love it!

* * *

Chapter 3

It was about half an hour later when Jacklyn walked in. She heard talking in from down the hall and went to see what was going on. Just as she walked in, Nepeta looked toward the entrance. As soon as she saw Jacklyn, her eyes grew curious.

"So, is she the Great Bitch?" she asked. All was silent for a moment as Jacklyn stood there, mouth open in shock. The silence was broken when Damien started laughing uncontrollably, so much so that he fell off the couch.

"No, no. That's my sister, Jacklyn," he said as soon as he regained his composure.

"When did she start talking?" Jacklyn asked. "And where did she hear that?"

"About when we got home and she heard it from Nick."

"Nick was nice. He's Damien's bro, right?" Nepeta asked.

"She's gotten a lot from that conversation with Nick, hasn't she?"

"What can I say? Nick's got a contagious personality," Damien said with a shrug. "It's not like he's a bad influence."

"True," Jacklyn said with a sigh as she shook her head. "So, what have you two talked about?"

"Well, she's not from around here. She's from another planet all together." When all Jacklyn did was blink, Nepeta spoke up.

"It's called Alternia. My kind are known as trolls. We pretty much live life like you do here, but you guys don't have a lusus."

"A what?" Jacklyn asked.

"Basically a guardian," Damien said as he sat back. "Nepeta said hers looks like a giant cat. Apparently they act like parents or something."

"Oooookay. Anything else?"

"Just describing my friends. Apparently, one of them would make a really good… how did you say it?"

"Politician."

"You mean all for the well-being of the people?"

"No, willing to lie about anything for her own personal gain," Damien chuckled.

"Right, I forgot it was you describing the job. Well, if you're not from earth, I guess you'll have to stay here."

"I already offered the sleeper since Nick's not coming over."

"I've got a question," Nepeta said, raising her hand. "Who's the Great Bitch?"

"Damien's ex," Jacklyn said with a frown. There was a silence before Damien stood and started walking out of the room. "Damien?"

"Don't wanna talk about this right now," was all he said before walking into the bathroom. When the sound of the shower running could be heard, Nepeta looked at Jacklyn.

"What happened?"

Jacklyn sighed. "He was hurt pretty bad by it." She sat down next to Nepeta and stared at the floor. "He and this girl Amy had been going out for a little over a year. Everyone thought it was going well for them. At least, they both looked happy. About a week ago, we found out that she had been sleeping with someone else for a month. I personally was ready to knock some sense into her." She shook her head. "Damien told her he was willing to forgive her, but she took that opportunity to break up with him. Nick and I were about to hunt down the guy, but Damien told us to leave it alone. He's been like this since."

Nepeta was quiet for a moment, then said, "I'm not sure I understand the situation."

"I don't know how romance and that stuff works on your planet, but here a couple will go on dates and if it all works out, they get married and live the rest of their lives together. When someone ends up doing the same thing with someone else while in a relationship, it's pretty much always looked down on."

Nepeta nodded. "I can understand that."

"Nepeta, why have you been clinging to Damien the way you have?"

"What?" Nepeta's head shot up with a surprised expression, a blush spreading across her face.

"Well, at the café, you looked like you afraid to let him out of your sight."

"I-I don't understand it," Nepeta replied as she started fiddling with her coat.

"Understand what?"

Nepeta's eyes went wide. "Nothing! Nothing."

"Right," Jacklyn said slowly. "Anyway, we better get some sheets on the bed."

Damien didn't say anything else that night. As soon as he was done in the shower, he went to his room and turned out the light. Jacklyn and Nepeta stayed up for a little while, then Jacklyn bid her a good night and went to sleep. All was quiet in the apartment for a good while.

Sometime in the middle of the night, Damien was woken up by the sound of whimpering coming from the living room. He quickly walked out there to find Nepeta tossing and turning in her bed and whimpering with fear. He sat down beside her and put a hand on her shoulder. She came awake instantly and sat up in the bed, tears in her eyes. That was the first time Damien saw her without her hat. He gave her horns a momentary glance before looking her in the eyes.

"It's okay, Nepeta. Nothing's wrong."

"Equius… Terezi…" She got those two names out before starting to cry again. Damien didn't know what to do, so he put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close.

"Shh, shh. It's okay. You're okay."

"I-I c-c-couldn't find them," she stammered. Damien wiped her eyes with the edge of the blanket.

"Couldn't find who?"

"My friends. They weren't there. Derse wasn't there." She put her head on his chest and sobbed a bit. They sat there for a moment with her sobbing into his shirt.

"You're going to need to explain some things, Nepeta," Damien said after she had calmed down a little. "What's Derse?"

She took a deep breath and started explaining. "Derse is the place my dream self goes when I sleep. Some of my friends go there in their sleep, too. B-but when I went to sleep, I wasn't there." She closed her eyes. "I'm sorry for waking you for this."

"Hey, it's no problem. You've had a rough day. I can't say I understand the whole dream self thing, but I understand missing your friends. I'm sure they're wondering where you are right now, too. All I can say is while you're here, you've got Jacklyn and me to keep you company."

"And keep me safe," she said with a small smile. She sat there, taking in the warmth of his body, before speaking up again. "Damien, why did you stop those men from hurting me? I don't even look like you."

Damien didn't answer for a bit. "I never thought about it. I mean, I usually stand up for the person who's outnumbered like that. I saw what you looked like, but I just didn't care. All I saw was someone who needed help."

Nepeta nodded. "You're like a lion, Damien."

Damien laughed. "You feel better?" Nepeta nodded. "All right then, I'll see you in the morning." He started to get up, but she grabbed his arm.

"Don't go," she pleaded. He looked at her and sighed.

"Jacklyn's gonna kill me for this," he said as he slid beneath the covers. Nepeta smiled and curled up beside him. It wasn't long before she was asleep again, this time with a big smile on her face. _Let's be honest here, how could I say no to her?_ He closed his eyes and fell asleep himself.

* * *

Wow, two in two days. Okay, I'll be honest, most of this was typed during my breaks at work. I mean, my lunch break finished and I was upset because I was really in the mood for writing. Oh well. Oh, before I forget, I'm off tonight, so I'll be writing all night long. With any luck, I'll have the next chapter up tomorrow!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

When morning came, it found Nepeta wrapped safely in Damien's arms as Jacklyn walked out of her room. She did a double take as she saw the two of them, then grinned a little mischievously. She quietly took a quick shower and sneaked back into the living room where she turned on the TV and fired up Guitar Hero in free play mode. She stood there for a moment, looking at the sleeping figures, almost as though she was considering not going through with her plan before her grin returned wider than before. She pressed a couple of keys, turned the volume up as loud as she knew the speakers would take it, and hit the strum bar, creating a loud wail from the speakers that woke Damien with a jolt.

"Who dumped the cat in the bucket!" he yelled as he looked around wildly. When he saw Jacklyn standing there with a triumphant smirk, he shook his head. "I should've known."

"Yeah, you should have. Did you enjoy your night?"

"Get your mind out of the gutter, sis. Nepeta was having a nightmare in the middle of the night. I came out here to help her calm down and ended up staying. It was a good sleep until you decided to try and play again. You know I'm better."

"Is that a challenge I hear?"

"Well, it is the weekend. What better way to start it off than by kicking your butt at this?"

"Wha's going on?" Nepeta asked sleepily as she sat up and rubbed her eyes.

"Just getting ready to enjoy the weekend," Damien replied with a grin as he got up and grabbed a game guitar.

Later that day, they were all walking to the café. "I still don't understand why you think we need to go on the one day off we have together, Damien," Jacklyn complained.

"Well, I was in a bit of a mood when I left yesterday, so I figured I would make it up to Jamie by taking his shift this afternoon."

"And you weren't going to tell us?" Jacklyn asked.

"I never said you had to come," Damien pointed out.

"Yeah, well if you were going, that meant Nepeta was going to go and I didn't feel like hanging around the apartment on my own today, all right?"

"Eh, you're just upset because I beat you again."

"It's not my fault you know more of the songs than I do. If I played half as much as you do, I'd be that good, too." Nepeta listened to all this, giggling all the while. She still walked close to Damien, but it didn't look like he minded.

"Keep dreaming, sis," Damien said as he opened the door and held it for them.

"Damien, you're here," Monroe said. "Good. I've got something I need to talk to you about."

"Hey, bro! Hey, Jackie! Hey, grey girl!" Nick called from the stool he was sitting on. "Mr. Monroe's gonna give me a job!"

"I said maybe, Nicholas."

"Nick, what happened to your last job? With the retirement community?"

"They said I was too energetic for the stuff going on there. Would you believe it?"

"To be honest, Nick, yeah, I believe it."

"Nicholas said that you two would act as his references," Monroe said, fixing Nick with a steely gaze. "He's aiming for a chef's position, so I've got two questions to ask. One, can this scrawny kid cook?"

Nick broke out in his signature smile. "Mr. Monroe, you bet I can-"

"I wasn't asking you, Nicholas. Damien?"

Damien chuckled. "That's just the way Monroe works, Nick. Yeah, boss, he can cook."

"All right, are you willing to spend time training him with your style?"

"I can think of few people I'd be more willing to train, boss."

Monroe kept his gaze on Nick before grinning. "Well then, welcome aboard, Nicholas. I'll mark down your time in and Damien can start your training."

"Awesome!" Nick crowed. Damien led him to the back room to show him where all the supplies were. "Dude, what'd I do this time?"

"What do you mean, Nick?"

"I mean, your sister's giving me her icy glare. I haven't gotten that in months, bro!"

Damien laughed. "Nepeta used your nickname for Amy when asking who Jacklyn was. As you can tell, Jacklyn blames you."

"Aw man, that's my bad, Jackie!" Nick called only to dodge as a pan flew through the open door.

"I'll thank you not to throw the pots and pans, Jacklyn," Damien called without turning around.

"Well, tell him to get his butt out here and I'll leave them alone!" she yelled back.

"Dude, how do you guys stay in business like this?"

"The customers seem to have gotten used to this sort of thing. Stay here and I'll go handle this," Damien said with a sigh before going into the eating area.

"What, is he too chicken to come out here himself?" Jacklyn asked.

"I doubt it, but it's not really his fault for the confusion on the nickname. To be honest, it's kind of stupid that you're getting upset about it like this."

"Really. You're really going to turn this on me?"

Nepeta had taken all of this in and took this opportunity to step between them. "Jacklyn if you're really this upset about it, I'm pawfully sorry about saying it." Jacklyn looked down at Nepeta with surprise while Damien smiled with a chuckle.

"Hey, did she just talk, bro?" Nick asked as he poked his head from the backroom.

"Made a cat pun, too," Damien said.

Jacklyn finally sighed. "Fine, I'll let it go." Nepeta smiled and hopped on a stool.

"Well, now that that's taken care of-" Damien started.

"Damien," Monroe called out from the back. "I've got a truck here all ready to be unloaded."

Damien sighed. "Be right there!" He turned to Nepeta. "I'll be back as soon as I'm done with this. You gonna be fine here?"

"Yeah, bro," Nick said with a smile. "She'll be great with Jackie and me here. You go do what you've gotta do." With that, he turned to Nepeta. "So you do cat puns?"

"What can I say? I love cats," Nepeta said with a shrug. "They're pawsitively purrfect!"

"I swear, that's the most adorable thing I've ever heard," Nick laughed as he pulled some bread dough out to cook. "So where are you from?"

"Alternia."

Nick looked at Jacklyn with confusion. "Some third world country?" Jacklyn gestured him closer before whispering Nepeta's origins in his ear. Nepeta watched as his eyes went wide, waiting for some kind of negative reaction. However, all Nick said was, "Well, that explains a lot." That's when the bell above the door rang as someone walked in. Nick looked at who it was and all sense of joking left his face. "Great, it's her."

Nepeta and Jacklyn turned around and Jacklyn let out a hiss of breath. There stood a skinny blonde girl with her long hair back in a ponytail. She carried herself with an air of arrogance that was echoed by the way she wore her designer clothes. She looked around the café a bit, then spied the trio at the counter.

"So, I take it this is the chick I've got to get Damien to forget about?" she asked, looking at Nepeta. "She doesn't look like much to me. Just a little kitty cat who needs to go back to where she belongs." Nepeta started growling, her hands clenched into fists.

"Listen, Amy," Jacklyn said. "The only reason I don't shove you back out that door is because this is public property. Don't give me an excuse to do it anyway."

"What, I can't be here to say how sorry I am to the man I love?" Amy said putting on an innocent face.

"Ahem, bullshit," Nick coughed.

"What, you have something to say, Nick?" Amy asked.

"Oh, don't mind me, I've already gotten one icy glare today, Great Bitch," Nick said before covering his mouth with an amused expression. "Oops."

"What did you just call me?" Amy yelled.

"Oh come on, it's not like you haven't heard it already. I mean, I'm pretty sure half the neighborhood has been calling you that for the past couple of days."

"What's going on in-" Damien fell silent as he saw the situation. "Amy."

"Oh, hi, Damien," Amy said, innocent face back on as she hurried over to stand in front of him. Nepeta turned around, looking like she was about to pounce on her. "Listen, can we talk someplace a little more, I don't know, private?"

"I think we've said all that needs to be said, Amy," Damien said. "If you have anything you want to add to it, you can say it here in front of everyone else."

"All right," Amy said with a slight pout. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry for the way I treated you. It was wrong. I'm lonely now and I want to be with you."

Behind her, Nick and Jacklyn were making their opinions of the situation visibly known while Nepeta was starting to get up, a glint of metal coming from her gloves. "Guys, cut it out," Damien said. Nick and Jacklyn went still and Nepeta hesitated. Amy turned to give them a look of triumph before Damien started to talk again. "I don't know what you were expecting, Amy, but for you to come in here jealous just because of a rumor that I've moved on, which may or may not be true, isn't going to wrap me around your finger again. I told you when I found out that I was willing to forgive you, but you snubbed me. That door's closed." Throughout Damien's speech, Nepeta started to relax more and more until she was leaning on the counter.

Monroe stepped out from the back. "Amy, if you're not here to buy something, I'm going to have to ask you to leave." Amy looked around, surprised at the turn of events, then stormed out of the café.

"Uh, I have a question," Nepeta said. "What rumor were you talking about?"

"Ah," Nick stammered, rubbing the back of his neck, "I may have said something to Ms. Robinson down the street. And she knows Mrs. Johnson and between the two of them, it probably wasn't long before everyone else knew."

Damien sighed and Nepeta hopped over to him and took his hand in hers. "Are you going to be okay?" she asked, oblivious of the grins from the other three.

"Yeah," Damien said, cracking a grin of his own. "I just needed a little closure."

* * *

Well, I have to say I'm proud of myself. Three chapters in three days! Whoo hoo! I dunno, I'm sitting here trying to see if I could have done a better job with that confrontation. Can you guys see anything? You're the readers here, so you'd have the better perspective. Anyway, it might be a while until the next update what with another night of work tomorrow. See you at the next update!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

It was a couple of days later that found Nepeta walking down the street toward the apartment on her own. She looked around nervously, checking the shadows around her. The feeling of being the prey was nothing new to her, even if the hunters were. She hesitated when she saw three men walking shoulder to shoulder to her, obviously making sure she couldn't pass while the traffic was so busy in the street. She turned to go another way, only to find the same situation behind her. She smacked her forehead, frustrated with herself for getting trapped so easily. "Why can't you people leave me alone!?" she yelled defiantly.

"Because you aren't natural," one of the men said as they closed in. "I don't know what you are, but you don't belong on this earth and you sure as hell don't belong in this city." In no time, they had her surrounded in a semicircle, her back to a wall.

"Just let it happen and it'll be over quick," another man said.

"Now, I doubt that," a familiar voice said from behind them. Everyone turned to look at who the voice belonged to only to see Nick standing there, hands in his pockets, a deadly serious expression on his face. "You all right, Nepeta?"

"Go home, boy. This doesn't concern you," the first man said.

"That's where you're wrong, Dad. She and Damien are my friends and attacking her hurts both of them."

Nick's dad frowned. "Nicholas Micheal James! I said go home!"

"And I said no. Besides, I'm just a distraction until Damien gets here himself." He pushed his way through the men and stood in front of Nepeta.

"Nick, you don't have to do this," she said. "It is your parent."

"He's not really acting like it right now," Nick said with a small smile. "Besides, even if I don't have to, I'm going to do this anyway. Damien would defend you if he were here, so I will, too." With that, he turned around and raised his fists. "All right, who's up first?"

"Fine then," one of the men said as he stepped forward, flexing his arms in an attempt to intimidate Nick. Nick just sniffed in amusement and went into a defensive stance. The man went back and forth a few times, analyzing his opponent carefully before throwing a low jab at Nick's ribs. Nick hopped back a little, letting the fist come close enough to look like it hit, then pushed it aside, leaping forward and bringing a foot up to collide with the man's jaw, spinning him around. One of the other men ran forward to tackle Nick only to have the younger man spin to the side, leaving the path open into the wall. The man collided with it before falling to the ground, stunned from the impact.

That's when a third man shot forward with a kick, catching Nick in the ribs and making him double over. This was followed by a slam to his back, knocking him to the ground.

The first man came back to double team the youth before they all heard a roar of anger from behind them. "GET THE HELL AWAY FROM THEM!" Damien yelled as he plowed into the nearest man, bowling him over and continuing until he grabbed the third man by the back of the shirt and threw him over his shoulder into the sidewalk hard enough to knock the wind out of him. The remaining men looked at Damien and were startled at the anger they saw in his expression. Damien looked as a man possessed by a demon, his glare catching each man in the eyes until they landed on the man closest to his friends. "Get. Away. From. Them."

The man looked a bit doubtful and took a few steps back. "It's for your own good, Gregson. She's not natural," Nick's dad said.

"Since when do you decide what's good for me? To be honest, she's been the best thing for me in way too long. I'm not going to let you hurt her."

"Monroe's not here to bail you out of this one, boy."

"He doesn't need Monroe this time," Nick said as he straightened back up. "I think the two of us can do the job well enough. Though I would suggest you get out of here. I may not make this bloody, but I'm pretty sure Damien's about to lose all control."

The men hesitated for only a moment before running to pick up the two who couldn't move on their own and leaving Nick's dad standing there fuming. He glared at the two young men before saying, "I don't want to see you at my house again, boy." With that, he turned and stormed off, Damien glaring after him until he was out of sight. Finally, he sighed and relaxed himself.

"Thanks for calling me, Nick, and for protecting her," he said as he turned around only to be tackle hugged by Nepeta.

"That was so cool!" she squealed. "They took one look at you guys and ran off!" She turned to look at Nick. "Thanks for standing up for me, especially to your guardian. Do you think he meant it?"

"Knowing dad, I won't be going home anytime soon," Nick said.

"Not true," Damien said. "You've always got our place."

"Isn't Nepeta on your couch?"

"Damien's got another mattress under his bed. I saw it!" Nepeta said with a smile.

Damien chuckled. "Yeah, man. I don't think it'll be a problem. I mean, we still have your stuff from the last time you stayed over."

"Awesome! Let's go break the news to Jackie." With that, they started walking down the street, Nick and Damien on either side of Nepeta as a defensive measure. After they had walked a bit, Nick looked over to see Nepeta hovering closer to Damien. "You know, I'm kinda curious, Nepeta. Why is it you seem to cling to Damien the way you do? I mean, I've gotta admit I'm jealous. I wish I had a girl who would treat me like that."

Nepeta squeaked a little and blushed. "Um, It's not something that I understand purrfectly, if that makes sense. I'm still trying to figure out everything."

"Well, what have you got so far?" Nick asked.

"Nick, don't press her," Damien said.

"No, I should probably say something," Nepeta said a little sadly. She sighed and started explaining. "On my world, things aren't as simple as they are here, especially in the area of… romance." She snuck a quick look at Damien to see his reaction. He looked a little surprised, but mostly curious, so she started talking quickly. "There are four different quadrants where romance is concerned: flushed, pale, ashen, and caliginous. The caliginous quadrant is for Kismesissitudes, kind of an extreme hatred relationship, but there's a bit of attraction involved. For Kismesis' to exist, they have to hate each other equally. It's really complicated.

"Ashen is for Auspisticism, where someone mediates the relationship between two others who have a more platonic hate than kismessitude. The third person is required so that they don't delve into an uneven relationship and to make sure there isn't any infidelity in the existing relationship.

"The pale quadrant is a Moirallegiance. My friend Equius and I are part of one. We act as a balance for each other to keep each other from going too out of control. I can't be sure, but I think that's what you two have. One person has personality traits that help to balance out the traits of another.

"Last is the flushed quadrant. This one's more solid than the others because the belief is that everyone only has one. It's called Matespritship. It's also the most affectionate of the quadrants because of the level of attraction."

"Woah, woah, woah, woah. Let me get this straight," Nick started, "the whole version of, what was it, troll romance is four parts: true love, best friends, grief counseling, and arch rivals. Now, if I'm understanding it right, the last one sounds a lot like what we call soul mates."

"Way to put it into perspective, Nick," Damien said with a chuckle.

"Soul mate?" Nepeta asked curiously.

Damien put his hands behind his head and looked up at the blue sky as he explained."Basically, for every person out there, there's another person meant specifically for them. A perfect match for their soul, no matter who the other person is."

"Wait," Nick protested, "I'm still not understanding what it is you're confused about, Nepeta."

"Well, Karkitty always says that the quadrants only apply to Trolls. He said that no one else ever gets involved."

"Karkitty?" Damien asked as he cocked an eyebrow with a sideways glance at her.

"Well, his name's actually Karkat. I… I had a flushed crush on him," Nepeta said quickly with a bit of a blush. Nick rubbed his chin then exchanged a look with Damien.

"What are you thinkin', bro?" he asked.

"Well, she says she had a flushed crush," Damien said slowly. "I don't know, but it sounds like she's found someone else. Maybe we know them."

"Eep!" Nepeta squeaked with a horrified look at Damien.

"Dude, please tell me you're teasing," Nick said.

"A little, to be honest," Damien said with a small grin. "Nepeta, it's okay. Just calm down a little, please?"

"W-when did you guess?" she asked quietly as she looked down.

"Whoop, look at that, I gotta get going," Nick said after getting a look from Damien. "Monroe's expecting me at the café!" With that he ran off.

"Come on, let's go to the park," Damien said with a smile as he reached down and took her hand. She blushed a little more as she quietly followed. Soon they were sitting under a tree, both of them sitting back against the trunk looking up at the sky.

"To be completely honest, I think I knew for a while. I mean, Jacklyn and Nick were right. You were being pretty clingy. At first, I thought that it was because you were still a little worried and you felt safe around me." He chuckled a little. "After the thing with Amy, I think that's when I started to understand. Not that I was sure how to react to it."

Nepeta looked down. "Hey, cheer up, Pet. You should at least let me finish before you assume the worst." Damien smiled as he lifted her head by her chin. "I thought I was going to have more trouble getting over what Amy did to me, but I think life had a different plan for me. For once, I'm not complaining."

Nepeta looked at his eyes for a moment before tearing up a little and tackling him with a cry of happiness. They rolled a little ways, laughing as they came to a rest with her on top of him. "So, what do we do now?" Nepeta asked.

"Figure out what to tell Jacklyn if Nick hasn't told her already. But until then…" He gave her a quick peck on the cheek catching her off guard, before rolling on his side and getting up, pulling her up with him. "Let's go home."

* * *

First off, I'm sorry to those of you waiting to read the next bit. First, I wanted the ending to work out and finding the right words was harder than I thought. I'm actually pretty happy with how it turned out. Second, I wanted to make sure I got as much of the quadrants right as possible, so there was constant going back and forth between this chapter, the webcomic, and the MSPA wiki. Whole lot of fun though. I didn't expect the confession so soon, but I like having it here. Enjoy!


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

"Now hold on a second," Jacklyn said quickly as she put up her hands. "I'm not sure I get what you're saying. You mean to tell me that you and Nepeta are going to start dating?"

"I don't know that we need to," Nepeta said with a smile from where she was perched by the window. Damien leaned against the wall beside her, arms folded across his chest, but with a matching smile.

"Listen, I don't mean to be rude, but you're planning on starting a relationship with an alien. What could possibly justify this?"

Damien looked her in the eye and said, "Just two words. Soul mate."

Jacklyn looked a little surprised, then shook her head. "I honestly don't know how to respond to that. I mean, when did this happen?"

"Right around when she first got here," Damien said as he looked over at the Troll. "You _were_ wondering why she was always watching me like she was. I would think that this explains it."

"Damien, I love you, I really do, but have you really thought this through? What about children? We don't even know how their reproductive cycle works."

Nepeta blushed deeply and mumbled, "Let's not get into that right now."

"Listen, we can cross that bridge when we get to it. All I know is that she makes me happier than I can ever remember being. Isn't that enough for you?"

Jacklyn sighed and shook her head a bit. "Yeah, I guess it is. It really is good to see you smiling so much somewhere besides a stove." She looked up with a stern expression on her face pointed at Damien. "But let's get one thing straight right now, you. I don't want any overnight shenanigans. I can accept that it's easier for her to sleep with you in the room, but I don't want to come out here to you two in the same bed again. If you're going to do this, at least do it somewhat right."

Damien stepped into a sharp salute with a grin. "Yes'm. I will do as has been said, ma'am."

"All right, enough of that. Time for me to stop being a mother and start being a sister." She took a deep breath before leaping up from the couch, running over, and grabbing Damien in a hug. "Omigosh, I'm so happy for you two! You two will make such a cute couple! Way better than you and Amy."

Nepeta gave a nervous laugh, caught off guard by the sudden change in demeanor. "Damien, is she okay?"

"Yeah, just a rapid change in role. Nothing to worry about," Damien said, giving her a reassuring smile. "Just get ready for another one."

"What?" Jacklyn asked, suddenly serious again as she stepped back.

"Well, Nick's dad kicked him out of the house," Damien said, "so I offered the mattress under my bed."

Jacklyn sighed. "What'd he do this time?"

"Stood up for me," Nepeta said. "His guardian and some others were going to attack me when he showed up. He also called Damien before getting involved. It was so cool!" Damien chuckled.

"So his dad kicked him out for helping a friend?" Jacklyn asked. "What an a-"

"Whoa there, angry one," Damien said, cutting her off. "Let's not get too mad that we forget you have to go to work soon." Jacklyn's eyes went wide as she looked around at the clock.

"Shit!" she exclaimed as she hurried to her room to change. Within five minutes, she was out the door, eating a bagel as she ran.

"Watch for traffic!" Damien yelled after her before he went and sat on the couch, Nepeta following and cuddling close to him.

"I'm glad she didn't get mad about it," she said, putting her head on his shoulder.

"I figured she wouldn't. She's been worried about me ever since the Amy thing, concerned that I was never going to move on. I figured it was just a matter of finding someone, personally." He put an arm around her shoulders. They sat there for about five minutes before his stomach started grumbling.

"Hungry?" she asked, slightly amused.

"Just a little," he admitted. "I haven't eaten anything for a few hours before Nick called me."

"Let's go to the café then," she said as she hopped up, grabbing his hand and pulling him up. "I kind of want more of those pancakes!"

"Maybe get some steaks on the way back and have dinner waiting for Jacklyn when she gets home," Damien mused as he allowed himself to be led out the door.

A little while later, they walked into the café and sat at the counter. "What, did you two get bored without me?" Jacklyn asked.

"More like we got hungry," Damien said. They ordered their food and waited, talking with Jacklyn until they heard Nick singing a little off key. "Nick! Lower the pitch a little!"

"Hey, bro! How'd it go?" Nick said as he put some pancake batter on to cook.

"How do you think?" Damien asked with a smile. Nick grinned back and nodded.

"I knew it would all work out. So, when's the wedding?"

"Concentrate on your pan there, Fieri," Jacklyn scolded.

"I may be wrong, but I don't thing Guy Fieri ever worked in a café," Damien said as Monroe walked in from the back. He took a look at the group and gave a satisfied smile before he went to check the register.

"He's not going to say anything?" Nepeta whispered to Damien.

"Monroe? He doesn't need to. The things he does say everything he needs to."

It was a couple of minutes later when a muscular young man walked through the door. He looked around a bit before his eyes settled on Damien sitting with his back to the door. He made no show about trying to stay concealed. Instead, he walked right up to Damien, grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. Damien took one look and sighed.

"Oh, hey there, Mike. I'm not on the clock, but Nick can help you out," Damien said with a smile.

"Where is it?" Mike asked bluntly.

"If you're looking for a specific food, you're going to have to say it, not just demand in a vague way."

"Don't test me, Gregson," Mike snarled. "I know you're keeping an eye on it, now hand it over."

"Hey Nick!" Damien called. "You in the back?"

"Yeah," Nick replied. "What's up?"

"Grab a rolling pin. If Mike makes it back there, use it."

There was quiet for a little bit as Mike and Damien glared at each other, then Nick spoke up again. "I can't find the rolling pin, but I did find a crowbar."

"It'll do. The choice is yours, Mike. Go back and tell those cowards that they can just give up, or go in there and take a nice long nap. If you want, you can go talk to Amy about it. Apparently you haven't been giving her enough attention since she and I broke up."

Mike glanced at the back door, then back at Damien. His eyes flashed with doubt for a moment, then the anger was back. He slowly started to back away, not blinking with every step. "That thing's not safe, Gregson. It needs to go."

"Trust me, she's purrfectly safe while I'm around," Damien said as he cracked a grin. Mike gave him an odd look, then left as Nick came out from back.

"Dude, I think Nepeta's rubbing off on you," he said with a grin. "So, why do we have a crowbar?"

"The same reason Monroe made the freezer so that you could turn it off from the inside. He keeps saying it's better if we just let it go at Z.A.P."

"I think the war made him a little weird," Nick said with a chuckle.

"What was that?" Monroe asked as he came through the front door smelling a bit like the cigarettes he had been smoking on his break.

"Nothing, boss man!" Nick said quickly as he moved to get busy. Damien glared out the window for a bit, watching to see if Mike would give it a second try.

"Damien, you might want to get rid of the anger, there," Monroe said. "The girls are about to come in."

Damien shook his head a couple of times before he went and sat down at the counter again. "Thanks for giving them the money to go shopping, boss."

"It was nothing," Monroe said. "I just figured Nepeta should be wearing more variety than she has been."

Just then, the door opened as the girls walked in. Damien turned around and smiled as he saw Nepeta. She walked up to him and asked, "So, what do you think?" She was wearing a green hoodie with yellow sleeves. On the front, there was the silhouette of a cat's head with "Meow" followed by a heart printed on it. She had taken off her hat, letting her dark hair bounce as she walked.

"Pawsitively amazing, Pet," Damien said, his smile getting wider. She looked at him for a second, then tackle-hugged him with a smile.

"Since when do you use cat puns?" she asked.

"Since a couple of minutes ago. I like it. It makes me think of someone furry special."

"Are you two going to be like this in public?" Jacklyn asked, her smile adding a bit of humor to her words.

"It's possible," Damien said, feeling for once that all was right with the world.

* * *

I know it's been a long wait, but part of me is stalling against the part I know is coming, part has already moved on to other projects, and the last part is constantly fighting against those two parts because I do enjoy writing this story and I know that you guys are enjoying reading it. Stupid ADHD. Anyway, hopefully I can get the next chapter up faster.


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